HIS TRUCK HAD A COLORFUL DRAWING TAPED TO THE SUN VISOR
I reached for the insurance papers in the glove compartment and felt something crinkle under my fingers. It was taped neatly to the underside of the sun visor, hidden from a casual glance. My hand froze. A child’s drawing, brightly colored with thick crayon strokes, depicting a stick figure family smiling under a huge yellow sun. The paper felt slightly rough under my touch.
But it wasn’t the picture that made my stomach drop; it was the name scrawled clumsily in the bottom corner: “To Daddy, Love Lily.” Lily. We don’t have a Lily, or any kids for that matter. My mind raced, trying to find any explanation.
He walked in then, whistling, oblivious. “What are you doing in the truck?” he asked, his voice too light, too casual. I held up the drawing, my hand trembling, the vibrant colors blurring through my tears. “Who is Lily?” I choked out, the words raw and sharp.
His face went white, the whistling stopped dead. He just stared at the drawing, then at me, a deep, unsettling silence filling the small space. My throat tightened, the faint smell of his cologne suddenly sickening.
And that’s when I saw the tiny, faded scar just above his left eyebrow.
👇 *Full story continued in the comments…*”I don’t understand,” he stammered, finally breaking the silence. “I… I don’t know a Lily.” He reached for the drawing, but I snatched it back, clutching it to my chest.
“Don’t lie to me,” I whispered, the accusation hanging in the air. “This was hidden. You knew it was here. And you knew I wasn’t supposed to see it.”
He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes darting around the truck cab as if searching for an escape route. “Okay, okay, just… give me a minute. Let me explain.” He took a deep breath. “Lily was… a long time ago. Before you. A child I never knew I had.”
The air whooshed out of my lungs. The world seemed to tilt on its axis. “What? You have a child? You kept this from me? All these years?” The betrayal felt like a physical blow.
He sank onto the edge of the truck bed, his head in his hands. “Her mother… we were young. It was a mistake. She didn’t want me involved. She said she’d take care of it. I didn’t even know about Lily until a few years ago. I got a letter, a picture… this drawing was with it.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me? The woman you supposedly love? You kept this massive part of your life a secret?” My voice rose with each word, the anger bubbling to the surface.
“I was afraid,” he confessed, his voice barely a whisper. “Afraid of losing you. Afraid of what you would think. I knew you always wanted kids, and… and I messed up. I didn’t know how to face you.”
I stared at him, the man I thought I knew, the man I had built a life with. He was a stranger. “The scar,” I said, my voice trembling. “The one I always asked about, the one you always said you got falling off a bike?”
He nodded, shame etched on his face. “Her mother… she threw a toy when she found out she was pregnant. It hit me right there.”
The pieces clicked into place. The vague references to a “complicated past,” the moments of inexplicable sadness that would wash over him. They all pointed to a life I knew nothing about.
“I need time,” I said, the words flat and devoid of emotion. “I need time to process this.” I turned and walked back towards the house, leaving him sitting there, a broken figure in the fading sunlight. The drawing of the stick figure family felt heavy in my hand, a symbol of a life I could never be a part of, a life built on lies and secrets. I wasn’t sure if our life together could survive this. I knew, however, that I had to decide if I could learn to live with the shadow of Lily, and the man who had kept her hidden for so long.